What are the key points in diagnosing polio?

Patients suffering from polio are generally children between 1 and 6 years old. The main symptoms of this disease are fever. In severe cases, they may also feel limb pain and suffer from spastic paralysis, which will have a great impact on the child's future living and learning abilities. So, what are the key points in diagnosing polio? The following is a detailed introduction.

(I) Cerebrospinal fluid usually appears abnormal before paralysis. It is slightly turbid in appearance, with slightly increased pressure and slightly increased cell count (25-500/mm3). In the early stage, neutrophils are more numerous, and later mononuclear cells are the main ones. It quickly returns to normal after the fever subsides. Sugar may increase slightly, chloride is mostly normal, and protein increases slightly and lasts for a long time. In a few patients, the cerebrospinal fluid may remain normal.

(ii) Peripheral blood white blood cell count is mostly normal, but may increase in the early stage and during secondary infection, with neutrophils being the main component. ESR increases in the acute stage.

(III) Virus isolation or antigen detection Within 1 week of onset, the virus can be isolated from the nasopharynx and feces, and the feces can remain positive for 2 to 3 weeks. It is more meaningful to isolate the virus from the blood or cerebrospinal fluid in the early stage. Generally, tissue culture isolation method is used. In recent years, PCR method has been used to detect enterovirus RNA, which is faster and more sensitive than tissue culture.

(IV) Serological examination: The titer of specific immune antibodies can reach a peak at the end of the first week, especially the specific IgM, which rises faster than IgG. Specific antibodies can be detected by neutralization test, complement fixation test and enzyme labeling. Among them, neutralization test is more commonly used because it lasts longer. The diagnosis can be confirmed if the titer of the double serum increases by 4 times or more. The complement fixation test turns negative quickly. If the complement fixation test is negative as expected and the neutralization test is positive, it often indicates a previous infection; if both are positive, it indicates a recent infection. Recently, the use of immunofluorescence technology to detect antigens and specific IgM monoclonal antibody enzyme labeling method has helped early diagnosis.

Through the understanding of the above content, we already know very clearly what are the key points about the diagnosis of polio. I hope it can be helpful to everyone. In life, we must learn more about relevant knowledge and do more preventive work in daily life. Only in this way can we reduce the occurrence of the disease. We must also pay more attention to the physical condition of the child and treat it in time if symptoms appear.